The market at work...
Che Guevara was a murderer and promoted slavery, I'm glad that this has been pulled:
Target Corp said on Friday it had pulled a CD carrying case bearing Ernesto "Che" Guevara's image after an outcry by critics who label the Marxist revolutionary a murderer and totalitarian symbol.I truly hope that Guevara is burning in hell next to Hitler, Pol Pot, Lenin, Stalin and other collectivist dictators...make room for Castro.Target had touted a music disc carrying case for Che admirers emblazoned with the Argentine-born guerrilla's iconic 1960 portrait by Alberto Diaz, or "Korda." A set of small earphones was superimposed on the image, suggesting he was tuned in to an iPod or other music player.
"It is never our intent to offend any of our guests through the merchandise we carry," Target said in a statement. "We have made the decision to remove this item from our shelves and we sincerely apologize for any discomfort this situation may have caused our guests."
Cross posted at The Liberty Papers.
Comments
"The market at work" my butt. The market-based solution is where people "vote with their wallets"... ostracizing hippy t-shirts to the realm of 19-year old vegan students, who in 99% of cases will outgrow that phase by the time they land their first real job.
A handful of busybodies sitting behind their computer screens and writing their little letters, and the chickenscratch corporations that kowtow to the faintest trace of controversy, is hardly the invisible hand of the market at work. Instead, it's the reason why you can't find ANY decent music in a Wal-Mart. It's the reason I have wade through a million blog posts about K-Mart selling "Brokeback Mountain". It's the reason I have to tune-out endless talk-radio drivel about whether Target wishes me "Happy Holidays" or a "Merry Christmas".
It's all incredibly lame, and would be completely unnecessary if busybodies would just mind their own business and leave the market alone.
Posted by: Steve Perkins | December 28, 2006 11:48 AM
It's the threat, Steve. The threat of making it an issue.
You can't compare Guevara to a movie that promotes homosexuality. Guevara killed innocent people. Brokeback Mountain made conservatives uneasy.
Posted by: Jason | December 28, 2006 05:31 PM
Ehh, maybe my earlier examples didn't ring any bells for you, but I'm sure I could find one that did if we talked about it long enough.
Tons of hip-hop lyrics deal with killing police officers, and more or less raping women. Nevertheless, I would not favor blocking such hip-hop albums from a market's shelves. The First Amendment and the free market can be a bitch, but I'll take the fleas with the dog. I'd rather have other people buying stuff I don't approve of, rather then encourage a culture in which *I* can be blocked from buying stuff someone else doesn't approve.
On a sidebar note... dude, were you traumatized as a small child by someone in a Che Guevarra t-shirt or something? There are tons of historical figures that are scumbags, but you seem to have a special place in your heart for this one... :)
Posted by: Steve Perkins | December 28, 2006 08:42 PM
dude, were you traumatized as a small child by someone in a Che Guevarra t-shirt or something?
Rage Against the Machine...a terrible, terrible band.
I just have this thing against commies...
Posted by: Jason | December 28, 2006 08:59 PM